Upcoming Events
January 2025
Tuesday January 21
- 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
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Mainstream Class #3 | Caller: Howard RichmanP.S. 003 Charrette School, 490 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014, USA
Come learn and experience the joy of modern western square dancing. Twelve weeks of lessons will get you up and dancing.
Admission: $15
Thursday January 23
- 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
-
Plus Class & Advanced Workshop #2 | Caller: Betsy GottaP.S. 003 Charrette School, 490 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014, USA
Offering a class for dancers interested in learning Plus, as well as reviewing Advanced calls.
Alternating between the two programs.
Admission: $15
Saturday January 25
- 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
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Saturday Special | Caller: Betsy GottaP.S. 003 Charrette School, 490 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014, USA
Rotate through Mainstream, Plus, Advanced, and Challenge-1 programs (based on attendance)
Admission: $15Recurs monthly
MAINSTREAM classes begin Jan 7th 2025
Learn the joys of square dancing in just twelve weeks!
12 Tuesdays 6.30pm-9pm
PS3, 490 Hudson Street, New York, NY
Admission: $150 for all 12 classes
Come for the dancing, stay for the friendships!
PLUS classes and Advanced workshops start Thursday January 16th with Betsy Gotta
11 Thursdays, 6.30pm-9pm.
President’s “State of the Club” Report
After meeting last year via Zoom, itâs so good to be meeting again in person.
When I last delivered these remarks several years ago, I was very concerned that our club was on the verge of disintegrating. Our attendance was at an all-time low and it looked like soon there wouldnât be enough dancers to make a square.
But that was quite a while ago and a lot has changed.
I think COVID-19 made others aware of how much they need other people in their lives. We have been breaking recent records for our Open Houses as people discover square dancing as an activity – Thursdayâs event had five squares with people sitting out! â And our classes have brought us several devoted new members.
And I think our COVID-19 isolation helped us realize how important square dancing is in OUR lives and how much we need the fellowship of our fellow dancers. In the past year our attendance at most dances has been up. And most of them have been at least breaking even financially. Many of our members have stepped up to make our events a success â our members who show up to dance and angel our classes, John Paine with his reviews and fetching refreshments, Raymond Lund, Michael Coan, Jonathan and Cindy Uejio who come early to set up and stay late to tear down; Ken, Caesar, Rudy, Ronald, and the custodial staff at PS3; Daniel Saviit and Kian Lam-Kho who keep our website up to date; Ray Emrich and Jim Babcock who plan social events outside of square dancing; Gabriel Rivas who assures our presence on Facebook; Susan Gill and Thomas Alamo who regularly bring order to our storage area; George Santos who tackled the basket auction at Peel the Pumpkin; Rick Massi and Dom Ponsades who support the club in many ways behind the scenes; Larry Caputo and Tony Bauer who add a decorative touch; Betsy Gotta and Howard Richman and all of our callers; and Howard Handler who schedules them all. And of course the election committee, Bob Bauer, Thomas Alamo, John Paine; and the work that my fellow board members, Jim, Gabriel, Michael, Ray, Daniel and William Carr have done this past year.
All a good sign of the improving health of our club. We may not get back to the âglory daysâ but we can be proud that though we are a smaller club e are a closer one. But we need a larger percentage of members to help out.
There are a several things we will need to address in the coming year. In two weeks, weâll be starting a Plus class for which weâll need Angels and an archangel. Later, we will have a discussion about the future of Peel the Pumpkin. Components of our sound system are reaching the end of their useful life and will need to be replaced. We need to up our social media game. And we need to lighten the load of our regulars who make our events possible. In the near future we will be asking you how you want to pitch in.
Lending your expertise or helping with regular tasks not only helps the club, but it has been shown that volunteering helps with our mental and physical well being as well.
So, again, Iâd like to thank all our volunteers for their work this past year. And while the state of our club is good, I look forward to your increased participation to make next year even better.
Respectfully,
Kim Norland
Club President
Peel the Pumpkin 2024
Hello, friends and fellow dancers! Another Peel The Pumpkin (PTP2024) has come and gone and it is now part of our proud square dance history. From all the laughter, happiness and smiles, we can assume PTP2024 was a huge success! Not only did the event mark the beginnings of our club in 1984, but it served as a reminder…
A trip down memory lane…
All Roads Lead to PS3…? Truth is stranger than fiction. Not only was the November Open House with caller Betsy Gotta a success, but it brought about a reunion decades in the making. “Yes. Last nightâs Open House was a surreal experience for me,” said veteran club member Steve–Shlomo Ashkinazy. “I was expecting to bring two first-timers with me, but they both backed out at the last minute. Instead, I ended up running into THREE old friends that I havenât seen in a long time. Each one was someone that I knew from a different social circle. Two of them were guys that I havenât seen in several years. But Jake is an old friend that I havenât seen in 51 years. We knew each other when we were both involved in The Gay Activists Alliance (GAA) at the very dawn of the LGBTQ Liberation movement in the early 70âs.” Steve continues as he reveals yet another facet from his fabled and storied life, “The accompanying photo was taken in a restaurant that I used to own in Soho. Everyone in this photo was active in GAA and came by to visit me one evening after a political meeting. Jake is in the bottom row on the extreme left, with his chin on his wrist and his elbow leaning on the table. I am top row center with the plunging neckline. Also of note in this picture is Jim Owles, a major early pioneer of the Gay Rights Movement. He is in the top row all the way on the left and wearing sunglasses. Thank you, Steve for your courageous achievements. It’s good to know you’re in our camp. Photo: Steve–Shlomo Ashkinazy |
Featured Articles
Peel The Apple!
First published as an article in Times Squared (June 2010- titled “Blame It on Mac”) BLAME IT ON RICK A few months ago, while assisting Rick Massi with his research at The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center National History Archive in Greenwich Village for past Times Squares newsletters, we came across among Mac MacCarthyâs collection a…